System and method for implementing a consolidated application process

ABSTRACT

A system and method for dynamically creating and presenting a network based application for any number of a plurality of products. The method and system upon receiving a request to apply for one or more of a plurality of products, dynamically creates an application pages that includes fields to input the specific information required to apply for the selected products. The application page is provided to the applicant through the network and the application data is received by the system. The method and system causes the application data to be processed and provides the results to the applicant. The applicant is provided the results of multiple specific applications in with minimal data input and in real time.

This application is a continuation application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 12/940,186, filed on Nov. 5, 2010, which is acontinuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/566,602,now U.S. Pat. No. 7,831,508, filed on Jun. 23, 2000. The presentapplication claims priority from and incorporates by reference both ofthese applications.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a method that allowscustomers of a networked service provider to apply for a variety ofnetworked services on one dynamically assembled consolidated applicationand enables them to receive real time decisioning on their applicationstatus for many products.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A networked service provider may want to provide its customers withaccess to a plurality of services, each services having its own, uniqueapplication process.

For example, an Internet banking site may wish to provide theircustomers with a full range of banking services, e.g., opening andmaintaining a checking account, applying for a credit card or loan,paying bills, or accessing brokerage or financial planning services.Using the current state of the art, before a customer can utilize theseservices, the customer must complete a separate application process foreach product. Therefore, the customer may be required to completeseveral applications, often entering the same information, e.g., name,address, telephone and social security number, on multiple applications.This is a significant drawback to the customer. This is also asignificant drawback to the Internet banking host because customerdissatisfaction may result in lost accounts. Furthermore, when acustomer of a networked service provider completes a serviceapplication, application processing may require a significant amount oftime. This delay in the application process is a significant drawback.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to overcome this and otherdrawbacks in the existing systems and methods.

Another object of the invention is to provide customers of a networkedservice the ability to apply for a variety of services on oneconsolidated application.

Another object of the invention is to enable customers to receive realtime decisioning on the status of their applications.

These and other objects of the invention are accomplished according tovarious embodiments of the invention. The present invention provides aconsolidated application system that comprises a dynamic applicationmodule. Users choose one or more services provided through a networkedservice provider. Then, the dynamic application module presents thecustomer with a consolidated application, which is partially completedwith information that is known about the customer. After the customercompletes the blank portions of the application, the dynamic applicationmodule sends the application to another server for real-time processing.

In one embodiment, the present invention may comprise a method ofenabling customers of an Internet banking service provider to completeapplications for particular banking services, where the applications arepre-filled with customers' personal information. Internet bankingcustomers, for example, may utilize a browser system to connect to ahost server providing a range of Internet banking services. If thecustomer wishes to utilize one the particular services, he or she mayselect that service. These services may include on-line bill paying,instant credit card applications, loan applications, or checking accountservices. The customers may have to apply for the selected service(s) bycompleting an application.

After selecting desired banking services and products, a dynamicapplication module of the host Internet bank, determines the servicesfor which the customer is applying. The dynamic application module thencreates an application page for the customer to complete over thenetwork. The application page contains fields for the customer toprovide the information required to apply for each required service.This dynamically created application page allows the customer to applyfor many services and products through easily completed and efficientapplications process. The dynamic application eliminates duplicaterequests for identical information from the customer that is requiredwhen the customer completes individual static applications for eachproduct or service.

To further expedite and simplify the application process, the dynamicapplication module is able to determine whether the customer is loggedin as a customer of the host Internet bank. If the customer is loggedin, the dynamic application module may contact an e-profile database toretrieve the customer's previously provided personal information. Thisinformation may include the customer's name, address, and telephonenumber. The dynamic application module then fills the particularapplication with the personal information and then presents the customerwith the partially completed application for completion. If the customeris not logged into the host Internet banking site, he or she ispresented with a blank application for completion.

After the customer completes the application for the banking service andverifies that the information provided on the application is correct,the application is sent for further processing to approve or decline theapplication. The customer then receives the status of his or herapplication.

In the above manner, this application process provides Internet users amethod to efficiently apply for products or services and obtain animmediate decision.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a schematic diagram of a system according to anembodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 2A and 2B depict a flow diagram illustrating a method according toan embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

For purposes of illustration, a system and method according to anembodiment of the present invention are described below. That system isdescribed as being part of an Internet system that enables customers ofan Internet banking service provider to complete applications forparticular banking services, where the applications are pre-filled withcustomers' personal information. The invention is described in terms ofan Internet based bank providing a multitude of financial services, someof which are provided by remote providers. However, this embodiment isexemplary only. The invention also finds application in other scenariosrequiring customers of a host service provider to complete anapplication in order to utilize services provided. It should beappreciated that the present invention could be implemented through avariety of networked environments, such as the telephone network, asatellite connection network, or any other system that providesinformation to a user in a network fashion.

For purposes of clarity and simplicity, the invention is described interms of the existing Internet. The skilled artisan will recognize thatthe invention could be implemented in variations thereto, such as theso-called Internet Protocol Next Generation (IPng) or any othervariations of networked packet-switch technology.

An embodiment of a system for implementing the method disclosed below isdepicted in FIG. 1. It should be understood that other embodiments forcarrying out the present invention may be provided. In the exemplaryembodiment of FIG. 1, a plurality of customers access the dynamicapplication system through user processors 20 connected using network 10to a host service provider 30. In the preferred embodiment, thecustomers connect to an Internet banking service site at host serviceprovider 30. Also in the preferred embodiment network 10 comprises theInternet, although the network may also comprise a cable network, a LAN,a WAN, an intranet, the Supernet, or any other network that allowstransmission of data The user processors 20 are local computersincluding Internet browser modules.

The host service provider 30 is a server on which resides the softwareinterface to the Internet bank. The host service provider comprises aplurality of modules that function to perform the functions describedabove in addition to other functions including those set forth below.Although separate modules are described for performing these functions,it should be noted and understood that additional modules may also beprovided and that modules may be combined.

According to the preferred embodiment of the invention, host serviceprovider 30 includes a universal session manager 32, a dynamicapplication module 34, an e-profile database 36, and an applicationprocessing database 38.

The dynamic application module 34 is a software package that providescustomer applications to the bank's products and services. The dynamicapplication module 34 interacts with the universal session manager 32.The universal session manager is a program to manage customer data andsecurity while interacting with the host service provider 30. When anexisting customer is logged in to the universal session manager,previously provided stored information regarding the customer is madeaccessible. The dynamic application module 34 interacts with theuniversal session manager 32 to gain access to this information that maybe used during the application process to automatically fill certainapplication fields. The dynamic application module 34 retrieves thisinformation from the e-profile database 36. The e-profile database 36 isa database that contains information regarding existing customers. Theapplication processing database 38 is a database that stores informationregarding an applicant's application process. Such information mayinclude the length of the application process, whether the applicationwas ultimately submitted and the ultimate decision on the application.The dynamic application module 36 interacts with the applicationprocessing database by providing data regarding the application process.

Approval of the application is accomplished through an decision module40. Decision module 40 is a processor dedicated to receiving anapplicant's data and determining whether the applicant meets therequirements for receiving credit. Decision module 40 may reside outsidethe host service provider 30 and may receive applicant data frommultiple sources. The dynamic application module 34 provides applicantdata to the decision module 40 and also receives the results ofapplication determination from decision module 40. The dynamicapplication module 34 is constructed to receive application data from acustomer's user processor 20 through network 10 and to format this datafor transmission to decision module 40.

The preferred embodiment of the method of dynamically creating anapplication page and receiving an application from a customer isdescribed below. Referring now to FIGS. 2A and 2B, the preferred methodexecuted by the system shown in FIG. 1 is depicted. In step 50, acustomer is prompted to apply for products or services offered by theprovider. The prompt may be included in a web page provided by the hostservice provider 30 at the request of the customer. The prompt may alsotake the form of an advertisement or other link to the Internet banksite. In step 100, the customer of an internet bank selects one or moreinternet banking products and services. The host service provider 30 maycomprise a server system connected over the World Wide Web or Internet10 to provide web-pages upon request from one or more users utilizing aweb browser on user processor 20. Accordingly, step 100 may comprise acustomer connected to a web site of an Internet banking service providerand utilizing the browser on user processor 20 to select a serviceprovided through that web site. This selection may occur through a pageor pages provided by the bank that allows the customer to selectmultiple products from an extensive list of available products. The termproducts is used herein to refer to products and services. In thisInternet bank example, the products include credit cards accounts,checking accounts (and overdraft protection), loans, investmentaccounts, certificates of deposit, etc. The selection may also occurthough an advertisement or other presentation that provides a link tothe dynamic application module 34. In the later case, the customer maynot have the opportunity to chose from among all the products andservices supported by the dynamic application module 34. The dynamicapplication module receives the customer selections from each of thevarious customer entry points and processes each request according theproducts and services selected by the customer.

In step 150, the dynamic application module receives the customerselection. In the preferred embodiment, the customer selection isreceived in the form of a uniform resource locator (URL) that isdirected to the dynamic application module 34 and includes parametersthat indicate which services or products the customers desires to applyfor. The dynamic application module 34 parses the received URL toidentify the products and services selected by the customer.

In step 200, the dynamic application module determines the categories ofinformation required to apply for the services and products identifiedin the receiving step 150. Each product and service supported by thedynamic application system is associated with the categories ofinformation required to apply for the product or service. For example,the customer may desire to apply for both a checking account and acredit card. After identifying that the customer has selected a checkingaccount and a credit card in step 150, the dynamic application moduledetermines the categories of information required to apply for both achecking account and a credit card. This may include, for example,information generic to all applications such as name, address, employer,income, housing, etc. Other categories may include information specificfor application for the checking account or the credit card account. Forexample, application for the checking account may include informationregarding whether overdraft protection is desired. Application for thecredit card may include information regarding whether the customerwishes to transfer balances from other credit cards. Other categories ofinformation may apply to multiple but not all services or products. Forexample, application for both the checking account and the creditaccount may include information regarding whether the customer desires asecond user to have access to the accounts. This information may not berequired if the customer is applying to purchase a certificate ofdeposit. Thus in the current example where the customer has selected toapply for both a checking account and a credit card account, the dynamicapplication module would determine that a general information category,a second authorized user category, a overdraft category, and a balancetransfer category of information is required.

In step 250, an application page is assembled that requests theinformation for each of the categories determined to be required in step200. Each category of information has a corresponding associated HTMLdocument. The document for each category includes objects permitting thecustomer to enter the required information. These objects may includetext fields, buttons, image fields, checkboxes, radio buttons,list/menus, etc. The dynamic application module 34 dynamically assemblesthe HTML documents associated with each required category of informationinto an application page. The application page thus includes all theobjects required to gather all the information to apply for each productor service selected by the customer. However, no information isrequested multiple times from the customer regardless of the number ofservices or products selected.

In step 300, the dynamic application module interacts with the universalsession manager 32 to determine if the customer is logged in as anexisting customer. The dynamic application module 34 performs a HTTPredirect to the universal session manager 32 to determine if thecustomer is logged in. If the customer is logged in, the universalsession manager 32 performs a redirect back to the dynamic applicationmodule 34 with a parameter to appended to the URL identifying thecustomer. If the customer is not logged in, the redirect back to theapplication module includes no customer identification parameter. If thecustomer is an existing customer that has logged into the system, thenin step 350 the dynamic application module 34 interacts with thee-profile database 36 to retrieve stored information regarding thecustomer. The customer identification parameter received from theuniversal session manager 32 is provided to the e-profile database 36and stored data regarding the customer is returned to the dynamicapplication module 34. The dynamic application module 34 inserts thisinformation into the appropriate objects in the application page at step375. For example, the customer name is pre-inserted into a name textfield in the application page.

The customer is then provided the application in step 400. If thecustomer has logged in as an existing customer, then a partiallypre-filled application page is provide from step 375. If the customerhas not logged in, a blank application form is provided. The applicationform may be provided as a direct reaction to the URL received in step150. The application may alternatively be provided after customer hasbeen provided with additional pages, which may provide additiondisclosure or instructions. A Secured Socket Layer (SSL) channel isinitiated once the customer selection is received and all data requestedby the application is encrypted, preferably using 128 bit encryption.

After the customer completes the application, the customer indicatesthat the information should be sent to the Internet Bank. At this pointthe customer input information is verified at step 450 to ensure that isin the proper form and meets certain minimum standards. Thisverification step may verify that all required information has beenprovided by the customer. The verification step may also verify that theform of the information provided is correct. The information provided bythe customer may be validated by comparison to acceptable field types,maximum length, minimum length, etc. For example, the verification stepmay ensure that the customer has provided a LIP code and may also verifythat the data input is a valid ZIP code or in the form of a valid ZIPcode. If the information input by the customer is not in the proper forma page is displayed requesting that the customer enter validinformation. If the information is verified in step 450, then theinformation is accepted by the dynamic application module.

Upon accepting the application information from the customer, thedynamic application module causes the information to be formatted andsent to the decision module 40, as shown in step 600. The decisionmodule 40 returns an application locator key to the dynamic applicationmodule upon receiving and saving the application information. After thecustomer has indicated that the input information is to be sent to theInternet Bank, the customer may be provided in step 550 with additionaldisclosure regarding the products and services selected. The system mayprovide other messages or advertisements at this time. The dynamicapplication module 34 also logs information regarding the applicationprocess. This information may includes data such as the time theapplication was provided to the customer, the time the completedapplication was received, if the completed application was received, andother information regarding the application process. This information issent to the application processing database in step 650.

The dynamic application module 34 requests the results of theapplication processing from the decision module with the applicationlocator key as shown in step 700. These results are provided to thecustomer promptly in an appropriate form by the dynamic applicationmodule 34. As this process is entirely automated, the results can beprovided in approximately one minute of submitting the application data.The results cover all of the products the customer may desire. If thecustomer application for any product or service is approved, the dynamicapplication module requests further identifying information. Uponreceiving the further information the dynamic application module 34provides the customer with a link to an enrollment module. If notapproved the customer may be provided with information regarding furtherreview of the application and future contact by the bank.

Other embodiments, uses and advantages of the present invention will beapparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of thespecification and practice of the invention disclosed herein. Thespecification and examples should be considered exemplary only. Theintended scope of the invention is only limited by the claims appendedhereto.

1. A computer-implemented system for obtaining application data from anapplicant through a dynamically created network based application formin order to receive an application for multiple products or servicesoffered by a single entity, the system comprising: a dynamic applicationmodule utilized by a host server for receiving a request over a networkfrom a customer computing system to apply for at least two of aplurality of products or services offered by the entity, the dynamicapplication module determining categories of information required forthe at least two selected products or services, wherein specificcategories of information are required to be submitted to apply for eachone of the products or services, the dynamic application moduledynamically creating an application requesting data corresponding to theinformation categories from the customer computing system required toapply for the at least two of a plurality of products or servicesavailable through the entity, and receiving the data requested over thenetwork at the host server; a universal session manager in communicationwith said dynamic application module, said universal session manager forcreating a verification of the customer originating the request anddetermining if the customer is logged into the system; a profiledatabase in communication with said dynamic application module anduniversal session manager, said profile database for providing storeddata regarding the customer originating the request, wherein the dynamicapplication module receives the stored data to fill application fieldsif the customer is logged into the system; and a decision moduleutilized by the host server, the decision module in communication withsaid dynamic application module, said decision module for receiving thedata, generating a decision regarding the application using a computerprocessor, and providing the decision to said dynamic applicationmodule.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the dynamic creation includesdetermining, utilizing the dynamic application module, each category ofinformation required for each requested product or service; locating,using the dynamic application module, at least one file corresponding toeach category of information, and combining the located files using thedynamic application module to create the application page in response tothe request, such that a field for each located file is included in theapplication page only once, thus avoiding duplicative requests forinformation to the customer.
 3. The system according to claim 1, whereinsaid dynamic application module, said universal session manager and saiddatabase reside on said host server.
 4. The system according to claim 1,wherein said dynamic application module provides the application pageover the network to the originator of the request.
 5. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the request is in the form of parameters receivedwithin a uniform resource locator and the dynamic application module isconfigured for parsing the uniform resource locator to identify the atleast two of a plurality of products or services.
 6. The system of claim1, wherein the dynamic application module is further configured todetermine whether the request to apply originates from a customer loggedin to the universal session manager and for accessing stored dataregarding the customer from an e-profile database if the customer islogged in.
 7. The system of claim 6, wherein the dynamic applicationmodule is further configured for inserting the stored data to completefields of the application page displayed over the network.
 8. The systemof claim 7, wherein the host server receives information over thenetwork from the customer computing system corresponding to eachuncompleted field contained in the application page.
 9. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the dynamic application module is further configuredfor validating the information input by comparing the information inputto validation criteria and when the information input fails to correctlycompare to the validation criteria, for assembling a second applicationpage including prompts to reenter information.
 10. The system of claim1, wherein the plurality of products or services includes bankingproducts or services and the specific information required to apply forone of the plurality of products or services includes informationregarding an amount of credit to be extended.
 11. The system of claim10, wherein the dynamic application module is further configured forforwarding the information input to the decision module for processingthe information input to determine if data input justifies extension ofcredit.
 12. The system of claim 1, wherein the dynamic applicationmodule is further configured for creating the application page inresponse to the request, such that fields for each located file areincluded in the application page only once, thus avoiding duplicativerequests for information to the customer and for receiving informationover the network at the host server from the customer computing systemcorresponding to each uncompleted field contained in the applicationpage.